Charging timer: start time based on END time?

[mwalsh]

Changed my timer to start based on end time tonight. Set it to end at 2am, because I wanted to half make sure it started. But I'm a bit taken aback that it's started already because the OP was telling me that it would take 5.5 hours and, based on how much I was discharged and previous charge times to 100% with a similar level of discharge, I wouldn't have thought it would realistically take more than 4.5 hours. I was rather expecting it to start between 8pm and 9pm. I don't know exactly when it started, but definitely within the last 30 minutes. :shock:

Edit: Yeah, here's a screen cap of the OP. Only enough time to put 6 miles worth of charge in, so that's got to be less than 30 minutes. Oh, and look when it's projected to end....4.5 hours. So that would be 11:30pm or thereabouts? It will be interesting to see when I get my 100% email.

 

[Jimmydreams]

Changed my timer to start based on end time tonight. Set it to end at 2am, because I wanted to half make sure it started. But I'm a bit taken aback that it's started already because the OP was telling me that it would take 5.5 hours and, based on how much I was discharged and previous charge times to 100% with a similar level of discharge, I wouldn't have thought it would realistically take more than 4.5 hours. I was rather expecting it to start between 8pm and 9pm. I don't know exactly when it started, but definitely within the last 30 minutes. :shock:

Mike...I have successfully used only the END time several times. I set the END time about the time I wake up for work. The car seems to leave little to chance and completes the charge an hour or 2 prior to the end time. So if you set the END time for 2am, and the car uses and hour or two buffer, I could see it starting right now....Also, I have noticed the "EQ-bumps" when using END time only. If you set a start and stop time, the "EQ-bumps" aren't there....nor are they there for a no-timer 100% charge. Do the "EQ-bumps" make a difference? I seem to notice a few extra miles remaining on the days where an "EQ-bump" happens.....maybe 3-4 miles. Let me know if you see a very small increase in available miles at the end of the day tomorrow.

Right now, my car is @25% charge and is set for an END time of 4:30am....it hasn't started charging yet.

 

[garygid]

No EQ-bumps for any 80% charge, right?
No EQ-bumps for 100% immediate (no-timer) or Start-End charges, right?

So, EQ-bumps ONLY for a 100% Start-Only or a 100% End-Only charge?

The EQ-bump has the long, quiet "EQ-time", then the "bump".

After the charges that do not show a EQ-bump, might there still be the EQ-time, but without the visible "bump? (I suspect so.)

Can the EQ-time (without the bump) be detected in any way?

Does it keep the EVSE "ON"? (Probably not.)

If the EVSE remains ON, does the LEAF draw a little extra power during the EQ-time? (I suspect not.)

 

[Jimmydreams]

No EQ-bumps for any 80% charge, right?
No EQ-bumps for 100% immediate (no-timer) or Start-End charges, right?

So, EQ-bumps ONLY for a 100% Start-Only or a 100% End-Only charge?

The EQ-bump has the long, quiet "EQ-time", then the "bump".

After the charges that do not show a EQ-bump, might there still be the EQ-time, but without the visible "bump? (I suspect so.)

Can the EQ-time (without the bump) be detected in any way?

Does it keep the EVSE "ON"? (Probably not.)

If the EVSE remains ON, does the LEAF draw a little extra power during the EQ-time? (I suspect not.)

Gary...

I go by the graph on my TED. The ONLY eq-bumps I've seen are on 100% END time only charges.

You can see a double bump on this one (it might have been after Turtle-Mode). The charge on the right of the screen was a 100% manual charge....no bumps. (ignore the very first two bumps on the left...that was me playing with the charger manually)

This is is much easier to see...only one bump.

I'm doing another END-only charge tonight....let's see if I get another bump.

 

[AndyH]

All we know is that we have pulses. Maybe it's best not to call them equalization or balancing related before we go off into a field trying to analyze an artifact as if it was a real fact?

 

[mwalsh]

Got my "12 of 12" email message at 10:56pm, and that means it really did only take ~4.5 hours I would have expected it to, based on SOC when I reached home last night. So to try and stay in Super Off-Peak for the entire charge, based on my normal usage, I would probably have to set a very late arbitrary end time of maybe 7am or 8am.

 

[evnow]

Got my "12 of 12" email message at 10:56pm, and that means it really did only take ~4.5 hours I would have expected it to, based on SOC when I reached home last night. So to try and stay in Super Off-Peak for the entire charge, based on my normal usage, I would probably have to set a very late arbitrary end time of maybe 7am or 8am.

Isn't it better to just set a start time ?

 

[Frank]

Got my "12 of 12" email message at 10:56pm, and that means it really did only take ~4.5 hours I would have expected it to, based on SOC when I reached home last night. So to try and stay in Super Off-Peak for the entire charge, based on my normal usage, I would probably have to set a very late arbitrary end time of maybe 7am or 8am.

That is really weird since you said you set an End time of 2:00 AM. Why did the charge event end 3 hours early? I think this seems like a good question for Nissan.

So to stay within Super Off Peak rates (12-5AM) it seems that one would need to set both a Start and End time for the entire 5 hour window. Is there any down side to doing that other than the possiblity that the battery may not be charged up to the level that you need it when you wake up?

 

[walterbays]

There seem to be many problems with automated timer control, interaction with CC, and interface with web and smart phone apps. It doesn't look like a matter of a few bugs to me, but that they have never even thought all the way through what they intend the functionality to be.

I expect Nissan will eventually get there, but in the mean time I don't relish having to go out to the car and push buttons whenever I want to turn charging on or off - reliably. So I'm more interested than ever in what UhClem and others may be doing to reverse engineer the protocol so that car control apps can be independently developed. http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=2376 Of course I could wish that Nissan would just publish the specs....

 

[garygid]

Even if you have all the commands that the car will respond to, there might not be a "Stop Charging" command (yet).

Further, this app-to-CARWINGS communication SHOULD be encrypted in some way, so that another cannot "listen in" on your session and later pretend to be you.

For now, the iPhone app would be communicating with the CARWINGS server, not the car itself. Then, CARWINGS would communicate with the car, probably using some encrypted messages, for security so that others could not "take over" your car.

So, CARWINGS would need to accept and support a "Stop Charging" command, to be processed and the corresponding "message" sent to your car.

 

[garygid]

Presumably, if somebody can get the "owner" web-app ID and password, they could change the email/text-msg settings, change your password, and "control" your car.

If you find out, you could turn off the car's CARWINGS communication, just like a LEAF-napper would do.

Or, is that setting password protected in the car?

 

[mwalsh]

Weird stuff - charging appeared to take 5.75 hours last night. Assuming the "12 of 12" email wasn't delayed, this is the longest it has ever taken to charge from an apparent 33% charge. The only other time even close to being equal to this one, the car was showing just 17% before charging started. All other times the car has been charged from 33% (including the night before last...the first night with end time set) it has been between 4.25 and 4.75 hours.

 

[mwalsh]

Charging once again took 5.75 hours last night. But this time, I sort of expected it to...I ran down into bar 10 yesterday, thanks to a side trip at lunchtime, a couple of spirited starts from stop lights, and a couple of quick runs up to 65-70mph getting on the freeway (guess I'm getting a little cocky now I've figured out I've got a bit of range left at the end of a workday).

Rewarded with 102 miles of range. That's the most apparent miles I've received since the first day I charged the car at home and received 105.

 

[kolmstead]

Set Timer 1 to charge to 80%, no start time, end time 5:00 am. Yesterday the car didn't need charging, although it still sent me an email. This morning there were two; one from 3:00 am and another at 4:48, so I wonder if it is doing the extra "bump" even when charging to 80%.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

although my Carwings is not working yet, so cant get day to day stuff, i did go from 3.4 to 3.6 mpk which did not mean much, but did power up and had a 106 mile range so based on the 90% (i am guessing) pack availability that means i guess i averaged about 4.9 mpk yesterday. or if 80% pack i would be at 5.5 mpk

 

[Jimmydreams]

Kolmsted and MWalsh....


Do you guys think you're getting an extra couple miles at the end of the day by setting only a charging END time? I do, but it might just be the way I drive and/or traffic conditions.

Kolmsted, nice idea for the 80% charge with no start time. If we can figure out exactly how the car figures out it's start time, we can adjust a bit. My end time was set for 4:30 am, and the car started charge right at 8pm on the last 2 nights. It ended the charge at 1:30am last night and then had another 10 minute 'bump' at 2:30. Today, the car shows 107 available miles. :mrgreen:

 

[mwalsh]

Do you guys think you're getting an extra couple miles at the end of the day by setting only a charging END time? I do, but it might just be the way I drive and/or traffic conditions.

If it does, it must be averaging over more than the one day....I drove harder yesterday than I did the day before. But notice I stressed apparent in my post? I still don't think the numbers projected are worth that much.

Kolmsted, nice idea for the 80% charge with no start time. If we can figure out exactly how the car figures out it's start time, we can adjust a bit. My end time was set for 4:30 am, and the car started charge right at 8pm on the last 2 nights. It ended the charge at 1:30am last night and then had another 10 minute 'bump' at 2:30. Today, the car shows 107 available miles. :mrgreen:

I set mine for 2am and the last two nights have both started at right around 6:30pm, seemingly irrespective of the amount battery depletion, since I depleted further than the night before. I didn't catch when Monday started, but it was definitely sometime prior to 6:50pm, when I first noticed it had started already. My guess is the same time as the other two days, based on the amount the car had recharged by then.

 

[kolmstead]

Got my TED yesterday, so by next week I should be able to record precise start/stop times. Relying on email messages is pretty crude, especially since I don’t have start charge email enabled.

 

[Jimmydreams]

Got my TED yesterday, so by next week I should be able to record precise start/stop times. Relying on email messages is pretty crude, especially since I don’t have start charge email enabled.

You'll love your TED. :mrgreen:

 

[Frank]

Has anyone tried programming a charge Start time but no End time? This thread discusses setting an End time only, and it was determined that the charge event begins earlier than needed because the charging event ends 60-90 mintues before the programmed End time. I'm wondering what happens if only a Start time is programmed for say 12 AM. Will the charge event begin at 12 AM (it should!) and will it charge only long enough to bring the battery to 80% or 100% (as specified in the timer event)? I would like to stay withing the Super Off Peak rate window (12 AM to 5 AM) and setting only and End time doesn't seem like a good option because the charge event begins too early (up to 90 mintues before 12 AM for example).